Outdoor luminaires have begun to be pressed into service as power and mounting platforms for a variety of electronic sensor and data processing systems. The sensors used in these systems can be selected from one or more of a wide variety of devices including, but not limited to, cameras, microphones, environmental sensors (such as temperature, pressure, humidity, etc.), accelerometers, gyroscopes, antennas, and many others. These types of sensing technologies usually require electrical power input and a data interface in order to provide their data to the processing capability of the system. They may also require a means to provide mechanical support and protection from the weather.
Due to the nature of their placement outdoors, exposure to a variety of weather conditions must be considered when contemplating the construction of such a luminaire sensor system. A variety of traditional sealing and weatherproofing methods exist for the creation of a housing that can contain the electronics portion of the system, and standard methods exist for protecting optical elements, such as protective windows and/or performance enhancement coatings for use with cameras and lenses.